Hamlet | Blog Post #3: To be, or not to be.

PART ONE

Uncertainty of Death -

"To be, or not to be? That is the question—

Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,

Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,

And, by opposing, end them?" (3.1.57-61)

Negative Experiences of Life -

"For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,

Th' oppressor’s wrong, the proud man’s contumely,

The pangs of despised love, the law’s delay,

The insolence of office, and the spurns

That patient merit of th' unworthy takes,

When he himself might his quietus make

With a bare bodkin?" (3.1.71-77)

Appeals -

Ethos:

"And enterprises of great pith and moment

With this regard their currents turn awry,

And lose the name of action - " (3.1.87-89)

Pathos:

"Thus conscience does make cowards of us all,

And thus the native hue of resolution

Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought..." (3.1.84-86)

Logos:

"Who would fardels bear,

To grunt and sweat under a weary life,

But that the dread of something after death,

The undiscovered country from whose bourn

No traveler returns, puzzles the will

And makes us rather bear those ills we have

Than fly to others that we know not of?" (3.1.77-83)

Figurative Language -

Paradox - Death is a gift that is dreaded

Tone - somber and reflective; the serious contemplation of suicide is sometimes too great

METAPHORS - Death is like sleep, Death is like an Undiscovered Country

Comparisons -

Life on earth: “to suffer / The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, / Or to take arms against a sea of troubles” (3.1.57-59)

“To grunt and sweat under a wear life” (3.1.77)

Afterlife: “But that the dread of something after death, / The undiscover’d country from whose bourn / No traveler returns” (3.1.78-79)

Death: “To die: to sleep; / No more; and by a sleep to say we end / The heart-ache and the thousand natural shocks / That flesh is heir to” (3.1.60-63)

Humans: “Th’ oppressor wrong, the proud man’s contumely,” (3.1.71)

Thinking: "There’s the respect/That makes calamity of so long life." (3.1.69-70)

Oppositions -
"To be, or not to be? That is the question—" (3.1.57)

"Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,

Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,

And, by opposing, end them?" (3.1.58-61) 

Philosophical Questions -

Is it better to keep living, or to die a noble death?

Is death a gift to the suffering, or is death the tragedy it is always represented as?

Conclusions -

Fear of the afterlife is enough stop one from committing suicide.

PART TWO

Kenneth Branagh: Very simply portrayed, just with some very dramatic background music (that builds up throughout the scene). The setting is in a very grand hallway, mirrors reflecting Hamlet's image everywhere, as he stares at himself from all directions, and goes through his philosophical siloloquy. The mirrors and the overall somber setting and mood of the scene emphasizes Hamlet's self-reflecting and loneliness (especially with the focus being primarily on his face).

Laurence Olivier:  Again with the very dramatic, orchestral music - but the music leads into Hamlet's famous speech. This scene was the most authentic, in my opinion, in terms of the Shakespearean setting and costuming. This scene in particular shows Hamlet as a whole.

Ethan Hawke: The moderness of this scene makes the speech much more lackluster. Music was for comedic purposes, rather than building up the tension of Hamlet's speech. Hamlet is stuck in a video store with tough decisions to make, paralleling the words of his siloloquy. Camera focus is primarily on Hamlet's face, like the first scene.